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Hake with mung kitchari and sake clams

Preparation time
overnight

Cooking time
1 to 2 hours

Serves
Serves 2

By Nicole Pisani
From Saturday Kitchen

Ingredients

For the mung kitchari

  • 100g/3½oz green mung beans, washed and soaked overnight
  • 1 tsp ground turmeric
  • 1 tsp nori flakes
  • ½ tsp ground ginger
  • 25g/1oz butter
  • 1 lemon, juice and zest
  • 1 tbsp groundnut oil
  • 6 curry leaves
  • 1 tsp mustard seeds
  • 1 tsp nigella seeds
  • 1 tsp fennel seeds
  • salt

For the hake

  • 1 tbsp groundnut oil
  • 2 hake fillets
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • sea salt

For the clams

  • 250g/9oz fresh clams, scrubbed and debearded
  • 2 tsp sesame oil
  • 6 tbsp sake
  • 50g/1¾oz samphire
  • small knob of butter
  • fresh herbs, such as coriander, parsley and tarragon, to serve
  • sourdough bread, to serve

Method

  1. Drain and rinse the mung beans and place in a saucepan. Cover the beans with 1½ times the amount of water and add the turmeric, nori flakes and ginger. Bring to the boil and then reduce to a simmer.

  2. Cook for 1 hour, or until the beans are soft. Stir in the butter and a squeeze of the lemon juice. Season with salt, if desired, cover and set aside.

  3. Heat the groundnut oil in a large frying pan and add the curry leaves, mustard seeds, nigella seeds, fennel seeds and lemon zest. Fry until the aromas start to release and the seeds begin to pop. Take off the heat and stir gently into the mung beans.

  4. For the hake, heat the oil in a frying pan. Season the fish with salt and when the oil is hot, add to the pan, skin-side down. Cook for 3 minutes until the skin has good colour and then turn the fillets over and add the butter to the pan. Baste for a minute and then remove from the heat. Leave the fish to rest in the pan for a few minutes.

  5. For the clams, discard any clams with broken shells and any that refuse to close when tapped. In a hot wok, add the sesame oil and once the oil is very hot, add the clams. Cover and give the wok a good shake.

  6. Take off the lid and deglaze the wok with the sake. Cover again and cook for a few more minutes. Stir in the samphire and butter. Switch off the heat, cover and leave for a few minutes to bring all the flavours together. Discard any clams that remain closed.

  7. Divide the kitchari between two shallow bowls and top with the hake and clams. Finish with a squeeze of lemon juice, garnish with the herbs and serve with the sourdough bread.

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